On September of last year the European Union agreed that 160.000 refugees had to be shared amongst all European nations. At that time, this was only a part of all the refugees that Europe had to overcome, and all under the pressure of around a million of asylum seekers and migrants that had come to Europe since the beginning of 2015, having to distinguish amongst refugees and economic migrants. After almost eight months, the European Union has been able to redistribute just the 1% of all of them. Even though many countries are a bit reluctant to take refugees, major opposition comes from what is called the “Visegrad Group”, which includes: Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia, countries located thought out the Balcanic route, the biggest one migrants have been using so far.

Immigration kept increasing and the European Union had to take a step agreeing with Turkey a way to keep migration outside Europe. By giving money, six thousand millions of euros and some political measures, Turkey has been controlling migration coming from its border, the closest one to Syria, which is the main country were refugees comes from but not the only one. Africa is, alongside Middle East, where migration also comes from, being Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan the three most important countries. Avoiding the criticized Turkish way to deal with refugees, it is giving Europe an oxygen bottle. However, as a payment the European Commission has approved this week a law by which Turkey’s citizens do not need any visa to travel through the EU space. Thus, differences amongst EU and Turkey would diminish as Turkey expects.

Even so, Turkey can´t stop all the arrivals as there are more routes. As a consequence, the European Commission has taken a new step which implies to force all states to accept their refugee quote by using several ways. Consequently, the “Dublin Regulation” has been changed as it says the country where asylum seeker reaches should be the one which has to process its integration inside that country, however, from now on, when a country receives over 50% of demands it may deals with, distribution will be automatically initiated and other countries should take refugees according to its economy and quote. Despite some of the West Europeans countries disagree, the Union approved to fine states by making them pay 250.000 euros per each refugee they are not taking. Moreover, Brussels wants to avoid refugees going along all Europe looking for the best country to live so they would also be fined in case they do not follow European rules.

It is a wide range of new created rules in order to turn an allocation that has been approved by everybody but nobody wants into an effective system. Beyond European discussion to distribute refugees or even how to stop conflicts that create migrations, there is the one EU is having with the rest of countries, showing who it is. Especially interested on this is Turkey, a country which is in between two cultures and which seems to be deriving in a more Muslim-interested political system than it used to be. Then, for years, it has been trying to become part of the European Union and now at the same time, it is also focusing on the Arab world, trying to become a regional leader. Turkey is now standing in the middle of two worlds which are in trouble and, for sure, deciding which one is the appropriate one to become part of is a decision that depends on how Europe deals with refugee crisis.